Hot Mess

I made two pies this past weekend for parents and picnics. One was Cherry-Apple-Rhubarb and the other was Rhubarb-Peach. Both were hot messes. It was very touch-and-go handling the crust in the 90-or-so heat we've been having. I had to invoke a couple hobo patch jobs, which resulted in some pie goo leaks. But I'm not complaining. I'm glad it's finally warm. Let me know if you want the specific recipe for the pies. The heat has sent me into a state of summer lethargy.

Current Pie Tally: 55

"Give us your poor and downtrodden" Rhubarb Pie

In general, I think of pies as being rather decadent desserts. Yet they also hark back to something fundamentally American. A piece of the American spirit, a basic pie is an unfussy and filling way to use ingredients one has on hand. Pies are vessels, especially in summer, for the season's freshest locally available fruits - often things one can forage for. In my opinion, no pie is more of a workhorse in this regard than rhubarb pie. Granted it's not for everyone, but it's a real pie of the people. Rhubarb plants are cheap, need very little maintenance, and keep yielding fruit from the beginning of spring through fall. Luckily, most of my family enjoys rhubarb. I made this pie for a trip up to see my father and stepmother in law. My father in law in particular is a real glutton for my pies. I happily continue to bake them to stay in his good graces and bind the family together with a bit of butter, flour, fruit, and sugar.

This rhubarb pie comes from the "Straight Up Rhubarb Pie" recipe on pages 42-43 of the book "Humble Pie", by Anne Dimock. I made the 9-inch pie. My only changes were that I used less sugar (1 heaping cup instead of 1.25 cups), more cinnamon (1/4-1/2 teaspoon), and more rhubarb (probably an extra cup).

Current Pie Tally: 24

Great Grandma Helen's Rhubarb Custard Pie

We received a bunch of free rhubarb from some friends of ours in the community gardens at the end of last week and my mom suggested I make Great Grandma Helen's Rhubarb Custard Pie. I had never tasted this pie before. I didn't know what to expect, but I decided to give it a try anyway.

Not having much experience making custard pies, I didn't know how exactly to tell when it was done. I also thought the instructions to cook it at 400 F for 50-60 min seemed a bit excessive. I was paranoid the crust was going to burn, so I cooked it a little less intensely. I'm glad I did, because I anticipate that it's not too hard to overcook the custard. The pie that I made had a slightly underdone center (wasn't quite set in a 1.5" circle in the middle), but the other custard areas were velvety, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness. Light. Fluffy. Flavorful. Custard is good.

Since making this rhubarb custard pie, I learned that you tell when the custard is done by sticking a toothpick or chopstick (my choice) into the center of the pie. When it comes out clean, much like any baked good, the custard is done. Next time, I think I'll play around with the cooking time some more to get it just right. Maybe 30 min at 400 F and 15-20 min at 350 F. I also think I might leave the top crust off the pie next time to really let the custard take the spotlight.

Speaking of crust, this was not the best pie crust I have ever made. I added too much ice water and the crust came out rather heavy. No one else who ate the pie noticed, but it detracted from the total excellence of it. I failed to follow my own advice of "add the ice water a little at a time". I threw caution to the wind and dumped the recipe's 6 T of water into the dough all at once. Then I listened to the food processor struggle under the heft and watched the dough clump together like a huge ball of lead. Not gonna do that again.

Slightly Altered Great Grandma Helen's Rhubarb Custard Pie:
1.5 c. sugar
1/4 c. flour
1.4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. cinnamon
3 eggs, lightly beaten
4 c. (1 lb.) rhubarb, cut into 1/2" slices
pastry for 2-crust pie (lattice top)

Combine sugar, flour, and nutmeg. Beat into eggs with a whisk. Stir in rhubarb. Pour into pie shell. Add top lattice crust. Crimp and seal. Bake at 400 F for 20 min, then 350 F for 25-30 min. Cool and refrigerate.

Current Pie Tally: 16